President's Biography

Cynthia Robinson Alexander, J.D. 
Interim President of Savannah State University 

Cynthia Robinson Alexander began her tenure as Interim President of Savannah State University on July 1, 2023.

Prior to this appointment by the University System of Georgia (USG) Board of Regents, President Alexander served the USG for 14 years, most recently as the Associate Vice Chancellor of Finance. In that role, she led USG’s management of all alternative financing transactions including a $2.7 billion public-private venture program as well as the systems’ public-private partnership initiative.

Interim President Alexander has over 30 years of leadership experience in business and higher education, having successfully guided highly complex financial and business initiatives. For more than 14 years she has participated with and led cross-disciplinary teams in implementing creative solutions to address fiscal and facility challenges and opportunities across all USG’s twenty-six public institutions. As a fiscal and portfolio expert, she worked closely with institutional presidents, chief business officers, fiscal and facility teams, foundations, internal USG staff and external stakeholders including other state agencies, rating agencies, banks, and financial institutions. Under her leadership, her team oversaw policy, procedure, reporting, and design and construction as it related to financing facilities that are part of the USG Foundation’s portfolio.

Prior to joining the Board of Regents, Interim President Alexander worked in various senior level positions including Senior Vice President at Sumitomo Life Realty, where she oversaw fiscal, portfolio management and investment activities in Washington, D.C., Atlanta, and Los Angeles.

Alexander received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Urban Studies from Brown University, where she joined Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. during her freshman year. She went on to earn a Master of City and Regional Planning from the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University and a Juris Doctor from Boston University.

Interim President Alexander is a graduate of Leadership Atlanta and the Board of Regents’ Executive Leadership Institute. She has served as a board member of the Atlanta Chapter of Big Brothers Big Sisters and Commercial Real Estate Women (CREW), including serving as president. She is a lifetime member of Jack and Jill of America and for several decades was an active member of her church, Mt. Zion AME Church in Decatur Georgia. Throughout her career she has been recognized as one of the “10 Women to Watch”, "Influential Women in Commercial Real Estate," and "Who's Who in Commercial Real Estate."

Interim President Alexander is married to Charles Barnett Alexander, and they have two adult sons.